RCR33 and GT40 1051 meet on the track.

[Dean Lampe]

Relax Mark. I spoke to him for hours that day. We had a great time playing cat and mouse on the track. I passed him clean, he knew I was there and he had plenty of room. He also knew I was coming around. I spoke to him afterwords and his exact words where " It is always more fun racing against someone. It isn't that fun racing by yourself." Then he came over to inspect my car.

I said in my earlier post that it wasn't as dramatic as it sounds, however I was running as hard as I could. I can't speak for him. He was certainly not pissed off. He was at a lot more risk being on the track with a new ZO6 driver that had no experience with high hp than he was playing around with me.

Do you really think I would risk crashing my car just to pass a 40 year old GT40? Do you want the "real" story? Here it is, RCR 33 passed 1051. How much fun is that version? I think my version sounds more fun. Sure I took some editorial liberties but it just makes it more fun.

Get out of your pulpit and go have a beer. This is a "feel good" thread. If you want to call me out, start a new thread. I will be happy discuss my driving there.

[Pat Buckley]

Feel good? I dunno, Dean....quite frankly your thread left me feeling kind of uneasy.

Thanks for explaining that you were making it seem more dramatic than it really was - I guess you did say it was "unbelievable" at the very start of your thread.

Glad to hear that you wouldn't risk crashing your RCR though - that would have been a real tragedy!

[Chris]

That must've been just about the funnest thing a person could do with clothes on.

[EGLITOM]

Dean

keep on doing what you do and keep on posting it. It feels so good, even when not driving by yourself. Beeing a vintage motorcycle racer i now exactly the feeling you had and to be honest i care about the expensive " seeley matchless" besides me in the same way you care for the original GT40. We all know how priceless this things are ( which by the way also accounts for my racebikes and your car for myself and yourself) and would never put it into more risk than is naturally there by going on the racetrack.
THIS YOU HAVE TO BE AWARE OF.
DON`T GO THERE, AND BELIEVE NOTHING WILL HAPPEN!
ITS FUN BUT IT`S RISKY ALSO!
SO BE PREPARED TO COME HOME WITH A PILE OF PARTS AND NOT A COMPLETE VEHIClE ANYMORE,
at least if you want to be one of the frontrunners.

TOM

[Russ Noble]

Originally Posted by EGLITOM

Dean

THIS YOU HAVE TO BE AWARE OF.
DON`T GO THERE, AND BELIEVE NOTHING WILL HAPPEN!
ITS FUN BUT IT`S RISKY ALSO!
SO BE PREPARED TO COME HOME WITH A PILE OF PARTS AND NOT A COMPLETE VEHIClE ANYMORE,
at least if you want to be one of the frontrunners.

TOM

What Tom says is true.

Which is why I wouldn't want to own an original car. Although I suppose if I had the where with all to own an original then I'd have the funds to have it rebuilt properly after reducing it to to a pile of parts... So I guess it wouldn't really matter, it's all relative...

[Johan]

Own an original, race a replica or a continuation. It is a popular avenue to take these days.

[Dean Lampe]

This guy has been racing in this car for over twenty years. You have to respect that. I think what made this guy so cool was that he just loved the car, before it was expensive. He is not a waxer. Any pinhead with enough money can buy a real GT40 but it takes a car guy to drive the car like he was driving it. Watching this guy in a 4 wheel drift through some of the corners was priceless. He was there enjoying his car. I was doing the same. I believe we both added to each others experience. I hope all of you can get as lucky as I did that day.

By the way, during this game of tag we were turning high 1 min. 18.5 seconds to 1.19. That isn't a bad time for Putnam Park.

Here is a picture of me in his car.

[Johan]

For reference, here is a 1:19.2 at Putnam Park in a Zo6.
Looks like a fun place to kill some tires for sure !
YouTube - Putnam Park 100-Speed Lapping Day

[John]

Dean, please get a in-car camera system!

[Cliff Beer]

I was fortunate enough to see the Jim Click original GT40 running hard in some vintage racing last year and he was going bumper to bumper with some $10,000 tricked out 60's mustangs - didn't seem to bother him that there might be some paint swapping or wall hugging just around the next corner. Maybe it's the difference between a classic car speculator/investor and a real driver/enthusiast.

Sound to me like Dean had some fun track time with the latter rather than the former.

[Dean Lampe]

I think I am set up for in car video, finally. I should be able to take some great footage June 13th and 14th in Tulsa at the Shelby meet. I hope to do some laps with some of the guys here on the forum. That would be some great video. I won't be there until Friday afternoon so make sure you come by and say hello.

[Mike Trusty]

SO, If I happen to have my helment with me are you hinting that I just might get a ride?

[ijvpet]

I believe this is the car that holds the most famous 4 wheel slide ever!!

Drive it like you stole it!!!!!


YouTube - Gt40 losses control

[Dean Lampe]

That is the same guy! That is a great video. You can see by that short little clip that this guy isn't afraid to drive the snot out of his car.

[Mike Drew]

"That Guy" is Chris MacAllister, who is very well-known in vintage race circles. He's got a great racket--he owns the Caterpiller distribution rights for the entire state of Indiana. If you want to buy a tractor or piece of heavy construction equipment in that state, you have to buy it from him.

It's a third-generation family business, the next best thing to having a magic wallet that automatically dispenses money.

To his everlasting credit, he spends his money wisely. Long, long before they were considered especially valuable, he started buying old race cars just because he thought they were neat. He never thought they would appreciate. He has exquisite taste in cars; besides his GT40 #1051 (which began life as a road car with wire wheels, and served as a Ford press car; he bought it in 1983),



he also owns a '70 Gulf Porsche 917 (!)



a '72 Gulf Mirage M6, powered by a Cosworth DFV:



and a '76 Ferrari 312 T2/026, ex-Niki Lauda. (Lauda drove this car in all the 1976 season races except for his famous crash at the Nürburgring)



I got to make his acquaintance several years ago, as at the Monterey Historic Races he was sharing paddock space with my friend's father, Bob Gregory, who was running a Chevron B16. Over the years I've bumped into him here and there; the last time I saw him was in the garage at Le Mans last year. He was running an LMP2 Pilbeam-Judd, powered by a 4.0 liter V8:



By total coincidence, the French Pantera dude that I was hanging around with knew the owner of the French race shop that was providing all the technical support for the English Pilbeam car, so we got to blag our way into the garage during the race in the middle of the night. I didn't realize he was part of the team until I saw him sitting quietly by himself in a corner. I reintroduced myself to him, and we wound up talking for 30-40 minutes about all sorts of things. As he was the sole American on the whole team, I suspect he might have been a bit lonely!

He really is a terrific guy; very modest, almost shy even. He looks like a tall Harry Potter. I took a photo of him in the garage; that's him in the glasses on the right, receiving a pep talk from the French pit team owner:



Sadly his Le Mans ended early. All three drivers on the team were 'arrive and drive' types, meaning that all of them bought the ride, which meant that money counted for more than talent. Chris is an excellent amateur driver, mature, and could be counted on to nurse a car around the track for 24 hours. One of his co-drivers was a young French hotshot whose father was financing his growing racing career; he had already flung the car into the gravel at least once during practice. By total coincidence I was standing at Virage d'Arnage in the rain later in the evening, when the hotshot came in too fast, spun under braking, and in so doing broke something in the drivetrain.

Anyway, Chris is Good People to the extreme. If you ever are fortunate enough to see him and one of his cars at a vintage race event, introduce yourself and you'll find him extremely personable. He will be racing his Mirage in Plateau 6 at Le Mans Classic this year.

And BTW that fantastic video of him spinning his car and then hammering it away is well worth watching, if you haven't seen it before:

YouTube - Gt40 losses control

[EGLITOM]

Mike

thanks for the backgound of Chris. Do you think it would be possible to find out more about the engine/exhaust configuration of his GT40.
I ( and i thnk i´m not the only one) just love this sound.

Dean: Have you taken any pictures of the engine bay by accident.-))?

TOM

[Mike Drew]

Originally Posted by EGLITOM

Mike

thanks for the backgound of Chris. Do you think it would be possible to find out more about the engine/exhaust configuration of his GT40.
I ( and i thnk i´m not the only one) just love this sound.

It looks like it's a Gulf-spec motor, with Gurney Eagle heads and Webers, running through straight pipes:

http://www.racingicons.com/gt/1051.htm

Here's a video of Chris (hands-on owner) fooling around with the Webers, presumably trying to sort out the backfire at idle:

YouTube - Ford GT40 Crazy Sound

[Dean Lampe]

Thanks for the info Mike. I think I will be seeing him again. We don't live that far apart. I agree with your assessment. I really enjoyed the day with him. I did take some pictures of the engine but I will have to dig them up for you.